Israel's Ambitious Project: New Target is Egypt

israel - Israel is reportedly planning to build a canal connecting the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, as a rival to Egypt's Suez Canal.

Israel is said to be constructing a canal that will connect the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, with a length of approximately 258 km and an estimated cost of 96 billion dollars. The canal is expected to start from the port city of Eilat in the Red Sea, cross the border of Jordan, pass around the Gaza Strip, and reach the Mediterranean Sea over the Dead Sea.

The canal, currently named the Ben-Gurion Canal in the English Daily Express newspaper, is claimed to rival Egypt's Suez Canal which connects Europe and Asia.

It is mentioned that the canal will be 10 meters deeper than the Suez Canal, allowing the passage of ships that are 110 meters wide and 300 meters long.

The estimated cost of the canal is reported to be 95.6 billion dollars. It is projected to bring in an annual revenue of approximately 9 billion dollars and is expected to hinder China's growing economic power and the Belt and Road Initiative, while enhancing trade.

Amid ongoing conflicts in the region, the construction of the canal is deemed to be currently challenging due to security concerns. However, the maintenance costs of the canal are anticipated to be lower compared to those of the Suez Canal.

The article also mentions that if Israel accepts a two-state model with Palestine, the canal could pass through both regions and generate revenue for both countries.

The canal, named after Israel's founding father David Ben-Gurion, was initially designed in 1960. Egypt had prevented Israeli ships from entering the Suez Canal from 1948 to 1950, hindering Israel's trade with East Africa and Asia, as well as the import of oil from the Gulf.